Deliberate Words
by Conspectus, Inc. - decision managers, word masters, aggregators. There is tremendous power in a word that is perfectly placed at the best location, at the best time, during the design and construction process of a project. Deliberate words can manage success, build trust, and provide transparency that every member of the project team craves. As decision managers of the team, Conspectus explores the notion of how transparency transforms three main components of every project: behavior, content, and outcomes, through the appropriate usage of words. Behavior of every participant, is the foundation communication and collaboration, through deliberate words. It will transform the team, and build strong relationships. Content, the documentation built on these relationships, containing deliberate words, is then transformed. The outcome is a successful project, with a legacy of ultimate collaboration. Join us as we chat with members of the architectural, engineering, construction, and owner communities to learn how deliberate word shape their contributions, their projects, and their world! Through these conversations, words aggregate decisions, and transforms perspectives on transparency in the decision-making process.
Deliberate Words
What A Week! High Stakes, Clear Specs: Vegas Transparency
Dave Stutzman, Steve Gantner, and Elias Saltz discuss this weeks upcoming trip to the DBIA (Design-Build Institute of America) Conference in Las Vegas, where Conspectus will sponsor the Virtual Design Leadership Exchange and present on the value of engaging specifiers early in design-build projects.
Explore how design-build delivery differs from traditional methods and why it’s crucial for specifiers to be involved from the start. Design-builders, who oversee both design and construction, can benefit from structured specifications that align the entire team—owners, architects, engineers, contractors, and facility managers—around shared project goals.
A key topic is the use of UNIFORMAT®, a system that organizes project information by assemblies and systems rather than individual components. Learn how this simplifies communication, supports “continuous estimating,” and reduces documentation bloat—transforming thousand-page specs into concise, 30-page system summaries. This approach enables informed decisions, real-time cost alignment, and risk reduction by ensuring everyone understands and agrees on project requirements as they evolve.
They also emphasize the importance of collaboration, transparency, and permanent project records. By tracking decisions digitally within one shared environment, teams can avoid confusion, eliminate rework, and mitigate claims.
Listen for a special cameo from Steve’s dog, Paisley.
Key Takeaways:
- Early specifier involvement strengthens design-build outcomes.
- UNIFORMAT fosters clear, system-based collaboration and reduces rework.
- Continuous estimating and transparent documentation help manage cost and risk.
- Teamwide buy-in—including facility managers—ensures practical, maintainable results.
- Building a permanent project record promotes accountability and project-first behavior.